Stormont Environment Minister Mark H Durkan, whose own family was devastated by the loss of his sister in a car crash in 2000, said road deaths do not discriminate. "All road-users are vulnerable - every journey, every day, every road," he said. "The certainty of the unexpected means that it is crucial to reduce speed, wear seatbelts and eliminate high-risk behaviour."

The tragic tally of death on Northern Ireland's roads has declined over the last 40 years, according to PSNI figures. The worst year on record was 1972, with 355 people losing their lives.

In contrast, in 1931 - the first year for which official statistics are available - saw 114 people die in road traffic collisions.

The next spike in the road death toll came in 1941, when 275 people lost their lives.

It was not until the early days of the Troubles in 1971 that the annual total passed the 300 mark, with official statistics recording 304 fatalities on our roads.